November 21, 2008

I made these nuts to go into Brie & Pesto tarts which worked out OK, but these nuts are so much better just eaten on their own as a snack!

You will need: medium saucepan

Ingredients:

1 cup nuts (I used already toasted and slightly salted cashews*)

1/3 cup sugar

Directions:

To make the caramel: sprinkle the sugar evenly over bottom of your pan.

Cook over a medium heat, without stirring, for about 5 minutes until the sugar is melted and has turned a nice amber colour and has the consistency of syrup. Once the sugar starts to melt you can swirl it around the pan to evenly melt all the sugar. When the sugar has melted then you can stir the caramel (stirring too soon will cause the sugar to recrystallise and create a grainy caramel)

Remove from the heat.

Quickly add the nuts to the pan and return to the heat. Stir until the nuts are evenly coated with the caramel.

Transfer to a plate to cool completely.

There are a variety of things you can do with these nuts:

Coarsely chop them on a chopping board or put them in a zip-lock bag and smash it on the counter a few times and then use them in recipes on sprinkle on top of ice cream.

Create nut clusters (as shown in the picture) by using 2 teaspoons to make little balls and putting on a plate to cool.

You can store them in an airtight container up to 2 weeks - but they really won't last that long as they're very moreish!

* If your nuts aren't already toasted then you will need to cook them in medium frying pan over medium heat for 9 to 12 minutes until light golden brown. Transfer to a small bowl.

November 19, 2008

With just one week left in San Francisco and lots of baking ingredients to use up, I was on the hunt for a recipe that could help empty the cupboards.

I had an almost full pack of Nestle Toll House Cocoa and on the back was this recipe. I was a bit dubious about making the brownies as I've never had much success in the past - they've always been either too dry or undercooked with no hope of salvation.

But these are an absolute winner! The top is slightly crisp and chewy and the inside is soft and moist.

The recipe called for a 13x9 inch baking pan (which will make 2 dozen brownies) but I didn't have this, so I made cupcakes instead. I used normal sized paper fairy-cake cases and put them in my silicone muffin pan.

They are quite deep, therefore I needed to cook them for the full 25 minutes. When I inserted the toothpick it came out very sticky, but as they cooled down they continued to cook with the residual heat and the end result was perfect.

Makes: about a dozen cupcakes

Oven temperature: Gas Mark 4/350°F/180°C

You will need: muffin/cake pan lined with paper cases*

Ingredients:

1 2/3 cups (330g/11.5oz) granulated sugar

3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks or 180g/6oz) butter or margarine, melted

2 Tablespoons water

2 large eggs

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

1 1/3 cups (160g/5.5oz) all purpose flour

3/4 cup (75g/2.5oz) Nestle Toll House baking cocoa

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

1/4 teaspoon salt

3/4 cup (110g/4oz) chopped nuts (optional)

Directions:

Preheat the oven to Gas Mark 4/350°F/180°C

Place paper cases in muffin tin.

Combine sugar, butter and water in a large bowl. Stir in eggs and vanilla extract.

Fill paper cases to the top, they don't rise that much so won't overflow.

Bake for 18-25 minutes or until wooden toothpick inserted in the centre comes out slightly sticky.

Cool completely in the pan on a wire rack.

* Because I used a silicone pan which is really flexible but not very stable, I put it on a baking sheet when I put it in the oven (just thought this might affect the cooking so thought I'd mention it).

November 18, 2008

I had some leftover chili that Steve had cooked and some roasted butternut squash in the fridge and this is something I threw together. I wasn't going to blog it but Steve insisted it was so nice that I should write about it, so I've done my best to remember the quantities, but really it is a dish you can play around with. The roasted butternut squash on the top is really the concept we want to share as it's a surprisingly good addition because it adds so much natural sweetness. Credit goes to Steve for the photo - I was too busy eating!

Serves: 2 generously

You will need: small but deep baking dish (I used a 9 x 5 x 3 inch silicone loaf pan)

Ingredients:

225g/8oz macaroni

About 1 cup leftover chilli

About 3/4 pint cheese sauce

About 1 cup of roasted butternut squash

Directions:

Preheat oven to Gas Mark 7/425°F/220°C.

Cook macaroni until just al dente then drain well.

Mix half of the cooked macaroni with the chilli and spoon into a baking dish.

Mix the other half of the macaroni with the cheese sauce and spoon on top of the meaty pasta.

Scatter the roasted butternut squash over the top.

Bake in the oven for 30-40 minutes or until the cheese is slightly golden.

November 6, 2008

This is Alton Brown's method for cooking rice pilaf and it's brilliant! The rice was perfectly cooked, each grain separated and fluffy.

He says you shouldn't use the 1:2 rice to water ratio as there will be too much water. So you will need to remember the following measures:

To serve 2 people = 1 cup rice = 1 1/2 cups water

To serve 4 people = 2 cups rice = 2 3/4 cups water

To serve 6 people = 3 cups rice = 3 1/2 cups water

I cooked 1 cup of rice and I can vouch that his ratio works. Next time I will cook 2 cups of rice as the result was so delicious that Steve wanted more!
'Pilaf' is the cooking method, so you can add whatever extra ingredients to this basic recipe. He recommends using long grain rice.

Heat the oil and sweat the onion and garlic until softened over a low heat, don't allow to brown.

Add the rice and gently fry until it smells 'nutty', about 2-3 minutes.

Add the stock, stir once and bring to a boil.

Cover the saucepan with the damp tea-towel (it must be damp otherwise you might set it on fire!) and clamp on the lid. Fold up the corners of the tea-towel over the lid so that it's not hanging loose.

Put the saucepan in the preheated oven and cook for 15 minutes.

Remove from the oven and leave for 10-15 minutes with the lid still on, as during this time the rice is still cooking and absorbing the liquid.

* The tea-towel will capture any condensation that forms on the lid and prevent it from dropping back into the rice. I was a bit worried about putting the tea-towel in the oven, but absolutely no harm came to it during the making of this recipe.

We first had Thai Chook Pie at the Ben and Jerry's Sundae Festival from the Pieminister stall and instantly fell in love with it. This recipe isn't an exact replica as they use shortcrust pastry and I have only used the pastry to cover the filling (so it's more of a pot pie) but I think it's a pretty good version and makes a nice change from serving Thai curry with rice.

November 1, 2008

I got the inspiration for this recipe by one of my favourite Japanese anime shows, Samurai Champloo, as the 3 main characters are always on the search for food and they seem to eat food on sticks a lot.

So a quick search on Google resulted in Tsukune. I have adapted a recipe I found to add more flavour, but the basic method for making them is the same. They are cooked in two stages but it really isn't that complicated.

I think these would be great on the BBQ as you can prepare and cook them up to step 5 and then finish them over the hot coals.

The original recipe bastes the pork balls with Yakitori sauce but that calls for 1 Tablespoon of Mirin and 5 Tablespoons of Sake, both of which I didn't have as they're quite expensive and I wouldn't be able to use them up during our time in SF. So I substituted the Mirin and Sake with Hoisin Sauce to invent my own sauce!

Makes: 12 Pork Balls

Cooking Method: grill/broiler or BBQ

Ingredients:

For the Pork Balls:

300g/11oz minced/ground pork (or you can use chicken or turkey)

1 egg, lightly beaten

1/2 tsp salt

2 tsp all purpose flour

2 tsp corn flour/starch

6tbsp dried breadcrumbs (I used panko)

1 teaspoon chili flakes (optional)

1 clove garlic, grated (optional)

The juice from 1 inch piece fresh grated ginger root

Ingredients:

For "Poor Mandy's Yakitori Sauce"

5 Tablespoons soy sauce

2 Tablespoons granulated sugar

1/2 teaspoon cornstarch blended with 5ml/1 teaspoon water

2 Tablespoons Hoisin Sauce

Directions for the Sauce:

In a small pan, mix all the ingredients for the "yakitori sauce", except for the cornstarch liquid. Bring to a gentle boil then reduce heat and simmer for a few minutes or until the sauce has slightly reduced. Add the cornstarch liquid and stir until the sauce is thick.

Directions for the Pork Balls:

Soak 4 bamboo skewers in water for a few hours.

Put all the ingredients the pork balls in a medium bowl and mix until well combined. (You can use a food processor if you have it).

Wet your hands and scoop about a tablespoonful of the mixture into your palm and shape it into a small ball about the size of a golf ball. Make all 12 balls.

Bring a medium saucepan of water to the boil. Add the pork balls and boil for about 7 minutes or until the colour of the meat changes and the balls float to the surface.

Remove the balls from the pan and drain well on kitchen paper.

Toss the pork balls in a little bit of oil - this will help them brown.

Thread 3 balls on each skewer and cook under a medium grill/broiler or on a barbecue, keeping the skewer hands away from the fire. Turn them every few minutes until they are evenly browned.

Brush with sauce and return to the heat.

Repeat the brushing process twice, turning the balls to coat evenly so that the sauce caramelises.

NO BAMBOO STICKS? Don't worry, you can just put your balls on a baking sheet and cook under the grill, turning them often and basting with the sauce.

I served the Pork Balls with stir-fried spaghetti with mixed vegetables. My Dad often uses spaghetti/pasta instead of noodles and I think it makes a nice alternative/substitute:

Blanch some broccoli and drain. Saute 1/2 onion and some sliced mushrooms in a large pan. Add thinly sliced carrots and cook for a couple of minutes then add the broccoli. Add enough cooked spaghetti for 2 people and stir-fry for a few minutes. Add about 4 tablespoons of oyster sauce and make sure everything is nicely coated.